Logitech LS1 Laser Mouse review

Summary

Our Score

Among all the fancy high-end gear we review from Logitech, such as the G13, which not only had backlighting but its own LCD screen, or the wireless Wave Pro Desktop, it's easy to overlook the peripherals that simply do their job while not costing the earth. One of these is the company's new LS1 Laser Mouse.
As its title suggests, the LS1 is based on a laser sensor, but that's probably the most exciting hardware specification it can lay claim to - the main selling point being the range of glossy bright colours and shades. With ever more desktops, notebooks and especially netbooks becoming available in various hues, this will undoubtedly appeal to those who wish to match their peripherals to their hardware.

Not that the whole rodent is coloured: no matter which finish you choose it will always have a rubberised black lower half and white base. In its black incarnations, the LS1 comes with a red or green strip dividing the glossy and rubberized sections, while the white version is stuck with a green strip. Other colours (cherry red, pink, purple, blue and lime green) are all separated by a white strip.
We received the blue and purple versions. The top half's glossy finish is attractive in a cute kind of way - we can definitely see the pink and purple LS1s appealing to the fairer sex. It must also be said that despite the high-gloss finish, fingerprints and grease are barely visible - at least on the two colours we received.

But enough about the aesthetics, what's Logitech's most colourful rodent actually like to use? It's important to keep in mind that the LS1 is as basic as it gets: all we have here is a three-button mouse with four-way scroll wheel. There are no ergonomic curves or unique finger rests on this symmetrical mouse, which does give it the advantage of being perfectly ambidextrous.
There's also no sign of Logitech's micro-gear 'freewheel' scrolling, which is a shame though hardly surprising given the budget nature of the LS1. Instead you get a rubberised and well-positioned scroll wheel that, despite its slightly notched feedback, is a little inaccurate and therefore unpleasant to use.